Order of Ermine (Naples)
The Hermelin Order was an order of knights founded by King Ferdinand of Naples in 1464.
The order decoration consisted of a gold collar. An ermine hung from this. The motto of the order “Malo mori quam foedari” (“I would rather die than be defiled”) was based on the belief that ermine would rather go through a fire than run through a pile of feces. From this the purity and innocence for the order and its members was derived.
carrier
- Duke of Urbino (from 1474 including the Order of the Garter )
- Charles the Bold
See also
literature
- Economic encyclopedia by JG Krünitz, 1773–1858